December 3, 2005

 

 

The Test is Over!!

 

 

 

Well, the Zambian Nursing Test is now just a memory…..hallelujah!  I have to wait for the results sometime in late January, early February. I do have peace that God is in control and no plan of His can be thwarted. Our first trip to Lusaka without Mike and Linda, however, proved very productive.  We found our way around without any difficulty, had a very nice two day stay at the Holiday Inn, completed all of Mike’s errands, did a few of our own and even found a Dell computer store and had Sal’s computer set-up for e-mail.  We even went to a Chinese restaurant for dinner Thursday night!!! 

 

The hard drive on my computer had crashed the week before and we did not anticipate finding a place to service it, so we failed to take it with us.  The man who setup Sal’s e-mail told us he could have looked at it and saved all my data had we brought it.  We were able to get his contact information and will take it in January when I go to pick up my Nursing License. (I’m being positive!)  We were out of communication for awhile last week totally, so if you sent us an e-mail that we did not answer….chances are we never received it.  Please feel free to send it again. 

 

            After November’s totals, we are now well over 1,000 patients seen in the clinic.  Follow-up on previously written about patients: Joseph is doing much better.  Sal went with Anna to Zimba Hospital last week and brought him home.  I understand it was quite an adventure taking him to his home in the bush now that everything is muddy from the rains…..Sal was a real “stick in the mud” from what I gather!!! J  Sal took Susan to Livingstone Hospital also last week and had bloodwork done to try and get her in the government program for HIV medications. We both went last Tuesday to pick up the results and she indeed qualifies to start on the free Antiretroviral medications.  That is a blessing in one sense ….however it means that she is severe enough to warrant immediate treatment.  You see, you have to be pretty sick to qualify.  Sal and I plan to go get her on Tuesday and take her in to the HIV clinic at Livingstone Hospital to start the medications.  There is a such a need in the bush….without Sal going to get her to bring her to stay at Sons of Thunder Clinic for those four days, she would have died in her hut because she was too sick for the family to “walk” her out or  “bicycle” her out to get medical care.  Then again without Sal transporting her to Livingstone for the bloodwork, picking up the results for her, taking her in to get on the Antiretroviral therapy (ARV) and perhaps picking up her medication each month…..she had no hope of living.  I don’t mean to sound like we are of any importance, but when we cried out asking God “what are we doing here?” “what is our purpose?” “how are we helping?”…. He told us you are giving the people Hope.  We have had two encounters with men who have asked us for jobs.  When we asked them what they could do, they answered “Drive” and proceeded to show us their official driver’s licenses.  One man came to be seen at the Clinic and another man just came up to me and started talking while I was sitting in the car waiting for Sal to come out of the Pharmacy.  After telling them that at the present time we had no need, we proceeded to write their names down for future reference.  Now we are praying about God’s timing….Are you showing us a need Lord?  Is it time for drivers to do all this running around with patients?  Are we to start the transport system now?  Is it going to be different than an Emergency System?  If now is the time, is there another vehicle in the near future?  There are so many unanswered questions to pray about…..please keep us in prayer.  While we were at the HIV clinic in Livingstone, a Clinical Officer came up to Sal and asked if we were hiring.  Hmmmm…God just continues to light those stepping stones….

 

            After two unsuccessful attempts to meet with the woman from the local Health District in Livingstone to get immunizations and government recordkeeping documents required by them for pregnant women and children under five years old, we organized a Child Health Day last Monday.  The woman told us to inform our area parents and Monday she would come out to the farm with immunizations, needles, paperwork etc and show us how the Under Five program works.  So we had all the Sons of Thunder pastors inform their churches on Sunday, and Monday morning mothers started to arrive at 8:00am!  We weighed all the children, took their temperatures and gave them worming pills while waiting for the Health District to arrive.  When they came, we were supposed to give Vitamin A to children 6 months to 5 yrs and immunizations as needed. At 3pm, we closed the clinic sending all the mothers and 52 children home without immunizations because the Health District did not show up….they did not keep their commitment and showed little consideration to these mothers and their young children who had walked very long distances.  Everyone in Zambia, including these mothers say “oh well, this is Africa” and excuse unprofessional, incompetent behavior.  Well, I guess Sal and I haven’t been here long enough because for us there was no excuse for this lack of professionalism on the part of the Health District.  Understand, that during the day on Monday, we made multiple phone calls and text messages just to have them outright lie to us and tell us they were on their way…totally unacceptable behavior.  Well, we apologized profusely to the mothers and promised them that when we sent word out next time, we would have supplies in hand and not be dependent on the Health District.  We told them that Sal and I do not lie…that our word is good and we were appalled at what had happened.  We promised that it would not happen again.  Tuesday after clinic hours, we drove in to Livingstone Hospital to pick up Susan’s blood results.  On our way we stopped at the District Health Office to file a complaint with the person in charge.  After a brief discussion, we were told to come in on the following Monday and she would give us our startup medications and paperwork to take with us to establish our program.  Please pray that this in fact is what occurs!

 

            It is raining…..hallelujah!  People are out plowing their fields and planting!!!  Linda told Sal and I just today that the dam is full!!!  It rained the entire three days we were away in Lusaka and the waters began to fill the dam.  This is the first time I have ever seen green in Africa and I must say it is beautiful.  There are beautiful trees of purple and red….fruit trees with guava….pretty flowers etc. There are also however swarms of bugs in the trees that make a corporate noise sounding to me like locusts.  There are new bugs that came out after one of the rains….they are called flying ants.  They have wings and they get into your house somehow being drawn by even the smallest light and they die by morning.  All their dead bodies are all over the floor in the morning and need to be swept up.  God continues to make the Bible come alive for me….washing feet, a year to prepare Esther for the king (probably to soften her skin!), the cool of the morning and now I have a new understanding of the plagues out of Exodus!!!!  I can imagine a little better the concept of frogs all over the house and gnats etc.!  The Zambians got excited with the flying ants because they gather all the live ones on the ground outside in order to fry them and eat them!!  This is the time of year when food becomes a little scarce and so these ants are a treat!  They do have some protein value….and the Zambians say, “they are crunchy and very nice!!!!”  JoAnne fried some for her and the children and brought some over for Sal and I to try……we respectfully declined!!!!!  For those of you who know me..…can’t you just see me running around in the rain with my hair limp, mud up to my ankles, slipping on the slick mud as I try to walk to the clinic, running in and out of the rain as I go from one room to the other at the clinic, sweeping up flying ants, watching for snakes….can’t you just imagine???   STOP LAUGHING!!!! 

 

 

God does stretch us…I wonder what He has in mind for you???? J

 

 

Thanksgiving in Africa

 

I did not realize how much Thanksgiving has come to be about food.....well, food, family, friends and football!  But I guess that first Thanksgiving was about food, family and friends. too.  This Thanksgiving was no exception.  We spoke to our families by phone, as they gathered together to carry on the family dinner.  We were surrounded by new friends as we thought about old friends and the food was surprisingly delicious!  There was however no football...not even videos of last weekend's games.  Let me share with you our adventure.  First of all, the electricity went out around noon on Wednesday and as I write this Friday morning, we still are without power.  Thanksgiving was to be at Mike and Linda's with 37 people expected for dinner.  Turkeys are very hard to come by...Linda did say she found one years ago for $75.00 and after she cooked it, found that it didn't taste quite like an American turkey.  It just wasn't worth it, so dinner this year was 2 hams and 5 roasted chickens.  Fortunately Linda had decided to cook on Wednesday to save time and she finished the hams (with peach glaze) and all but a half hour of cooking the chickens before we lost power.  The electric has been going off pretty regularly since the rains started!  This time poles were knocked down and it takes days to reinstate them.  (A little rabbit trail - Someone said the Maramba River on the back of the farm has water in it already - so that is a praise!)  Back to the story at hand - It amazes me...the pioneer spirit and the problem solving ability and ingenuity of us Americans.  Linda and Mike have a 110 generator and they rigged up a small oven with 2 burners in the kitchen to finish the chicken.  JoAnne made Sweet Potato Fluff in that small oven using butternut squash since there are no sweet potatoes here at this time of year.  I was going to make honey glazed carrots but opted instead for grated carrot/pineapple/raisin salad, a recipe shared with me days before at Zimba Hospital by an experienced missionary.  I also made sour cream cucumbers making my own sour cream out of desert  cream and vinegar.  I had found a can of cranberry sauce in Lusaka on one of our previous trips.  So I opened that to slice only to have it "glop" into the bowl...but it was a little taste of cranberry none the less.  The other missionary women (all from town with electric)brought cornbread dressing, mashed potatoes, vegetables and homemade rolls.  One woman found a grey pumpkin in the food store in town and took a chance to make pumpkin pie...It was yellow on the inside and was just enough to end a wonderful dinner.  The only thing missing was that dab of cool whip!  The evening ended with the six of us (Mike, Linda, Terry, JoAnne, Sal and I) playing Dominoes with light from small lamps and drinking flavored coffee from the coffee pot hooked up to Mike's generator.  Perhaps we could replace football with fun...Food, Family, Friends and Fun!  That's what Thanksgiving is all about.  Pastor Jerry once spent a whole year preaching on the theme of being thankful...exceedingly thankful.  It says in God's word "to enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise."  We don't even get through the gate without giving thanks!  So Sal and I will take the time to give thanks to God.....for being part of His family, for being His friends, for sharing in His food (His Body and Blood) and for the fun of following His call.  We also want to thank each and every one of you for your prayers, encouragement and support.   THANK YOU.

Susan Goes Home!!!!

 

 

Sunday, November 20, 2005

 

 

Susan was with us at the Sons of Thunder Medical Clinic for a total of 5 days.  After  IV’s and IV medications with ORS for the first 2.5 days and then oral medications and HEPS for the last 2.5 days…..in addition to the excellent care of her mother and a support visit from a woman surviving with HIV…..she was ready to be discharged.  This morning, after mama helped her dress in her Sunday clothes, we put her into a wheelchair and took her to Sons of Thunder church.  During prayer requests we wheeled her up to the front of the church and read James 5: 13-16.  According to the Word of God, the elders of the church along with her mother and brother and Sal and I anointed her with oil and laid hands on her praying in faith for total and complete healing.  After service, she stopped at the Children’s Home to see her babies.  When she and her family were packed up, Sal drove them home with instructions for continued care.  On Saturday, Sal had discussed ARV (antiretroviral drugs for HIV) and the government program for free drugs.  She would have to take a blood test to see if her blood counts are in the range to qualify her for the program.  Susan told Sal, “I want to live.  I want to see my babies grow up.”   We will be taking her to Livingstone Hospital on Friday for the test. Thank you for the prayers already lifted up….please continue to pray that Friday will only prove to be a testimony to the awesome God we serve.

 

 

Well, if Susan was not enough…..We decided to hire Rona, the Community Health Technician, for Saturdays and special needs like setting up the Under Five program, working off shifts when we have overnight patients and going on house calls when available.  Saturday morning Rona came for us to discuss her employment and since it was Saturday it was decided that she would start right away.  I proceeded to start her orientation when Linda came to the door and said “There is an emergency…Joseph is very sick.  He is spitting blood, is having chest pain and can’t get here.”  Now Sal and I had gone to Joseph’s home on Friday and found him to have malaria after much attempted communication without an interpreter.  We started him on antimalarial medicine and ORS.  By the way, Joseph’s house is on John (the back 4,000 acres) so driving there in the Defender was quite an adventure! No roads…we’re talking about stony paths in the midst of alot of brush and even through a riverbed!  The riverbed was dry…I guess in the rainy season it would be driving through water.  On the way back to our apartment after treating Joseph, Sal looked over at me and said, “Did you ever in your wildest imagination think we would be in Africa, driving through the bush making house calls?”  We just smiled at each other… we both knew the answer.  Hearing the news about Joseph this Saturday morning, Sal took Rona (God’s provision) and got in the vehicle to get Joseph and bring him back to the clinic.  Since our only bed was taken by Susan, we put Joseph in the other room on the exam table.  Upon exam we suspected right lower lobe pneumonia…respirations rapid and shallow, no air movement on the right lower side and his chest pain was concentrated to the right side also.  After 2 nebulizer treatments (breathing treatments), he was able to breathe deeper: air, although still decreased was now heard over the right lung and he was able to cough up some mucous which was thick yellow with blood tinge.  We had to bring him to our apartment to give him the treatments because the power was out in the clinic. When we had finished the treatments and got him back to the clinic his temperature was 103.5 and he was starting to hallucinate.  We started an IV, gave him an IV antibiotic and fever medicine also IV.  We sponged him down and continued to monitor his temperature.  It was not coming down past 102 so Sal called Zimba Mission Hospital because there were Americans doctors there that we knew.  After talking with them and Joseph and his family, it was decided to take him to the hospital.  While we were packing things up to go and getting someone to get Joseph’s plow and chickens so thieves would not rob him while he was gone, two pastors came to visit Joseph.  We asked them to pray with him, which they did and we left with Joseph and his wife, baby daughter and brother. IV still intact and hanging from the sun visor, we also took an extra IV and his malaria medicine.  By the time we got to the hospital, which was a 45 minute ride, Joseph’s temperature was 98.9 and his pain was subsiding.  The doctors there at the mission hospital concurred with our suspected diagnoses and decided it would be a good idea to admit him.  After helping get him into a bed and assuring him that we would come back to bring him home, we left to return to the farm.  While we were gone, Rona was able to stay with Susan and give her medicine and monitor her temperature etc. 

 

 

My pastor’s wife, Cheryl Beall sent me a little story about a doctor in South Africa and how God provided in answer to a child’s prayer…. The amazing thing was God started to answer that prayer months before the child ever prayed.  You see the answer had to come in a box from the States to Africa by mail for the prayer to be answered in time.  Cheryl often has had a prophetic word for me and this time she said in her e-mail “Thinking of you Renee. Maybe there is a box already in route.”

 

 

As I write this update, her e-mail and that story keep coming back to me and I can see God’s provision even before we knew to pray….before we knew what we would need. 

 

 

*We purchased the bed for the clinic a couple weeks ago and only

 

  recently got it all set

 

  up. (then Susan came)

 

*We just purchased IVs last week before we had a need for them. (then

 

  both Susan and Joseph needed IVs)

 

*Rona just showed up on Saturday (remember there are no telephones)

 

  and agreed to start

 

  work before we knew we would be needing her….(then not only did 

 

  we need her to go into the bush helping  and interpreting, but

 

  then to stay late with Susan while we took Joseph to the

 

  hospital.)

 

*the wheelchair was in the clinic when we arrived in August and Sal had

 

  just turned

 

  someone down who asked for it (very unlike Sal since he had given

 

  one away

 

  back in September)…(Then we needed it to take Susan to the

 

  Children’s Home and church)

 

*The type of vehicle we have because God knew where we would be

 

  going in it and who we would be transporting

 

 

I really could go on and on boasting of our God and how He has provided everything we have needed right on time….even before we knew we were going to need it. 

 

He truly is Jehovah Jirah, our Provider!

 

 

 

  Susan with mother, brother and babies at discharge

November 17, 2005

 

So much happens around here that it’s difficult to capture it all.  Last Monday Joann went out to get a one month old set of twin boys whose mother was very sick and unable to feed them.  When she brought the babies back to the farm, she told Sal about the condition of the mother and asked him if he would make a house call.  Tuesday, after clinic hours, Sal and Joann went off in the Defender, medical bag packed to one of the villages to see this woman.  When Sal walked into the grass hut, the woman was lying wrapped up in blankets on a bed positioned along one side of the hut. On initial assessment Sal found Susan very diaphoretic with a fever of 103.5, having difficulty breathing and a heart rate of 160 plus.  She was very emaciated looking, having a large weight loss within two weeks after the babies were born and now having watery diarrhea.   

 

Sal performed an HIV test (OraQuick, donated by Abbott Laboratories and just brought to us, that uses saliva and has been found to be 99.3% accurate). As he imagined, the test was positive. Sal informed Susan of the results and immediately laid hands on her and prayed.  After removing the mound of covers over her, he gave her two injections, one for fever and one for infection.  He gave the family instructions on giving her (ORS) Oral Rehydration Solution and keeping her head elevated.  He left the village with Joann that day and returned home.  He told me, “I really wanted to bring her to the clinic, but she has to show me some fight.”  It was that afternoon when we discovered both of her babies also tested positive for HIV.  I started to question Sal with things like what are you planning to do with her?  Knowing that she can’t afford Antiretroviral ARV medication, are you going to purchase it?  Are you going to take her to Livingstone to get on the free medication program if she qualifies? Once you start, you will commit her to taking the medicine and what if she can’t get to town to get it?  What if she has to pay and can’t afford it?  To whom are you going to make it available?  How can you say no to one and yes to another?  In the middle of all my questions, Sal turned to me with tears in his eyes and a quiver in his voice and said to me, “I don’t know…all I can do is what is before me.  That’s all I know to do.  I can’t look at anything beyond that.” So Wednesday, again after clinic hours, he returned to the village to check on Susan.  This time when he walked in he found her sitting upright with a temperature of 100.8 and a pulse of 130.  Her breathing was less labored and she was not diaphoretic.  After discussion with her and her family, Sal brought Susan and her mother to the clinic to stay for a few days in order to give IV’s and IV medications and monitor her more closely.  This morning, Susan was alert and more responsive, breathing easier with a temperature of 97 and a heart rate of 110.  She got up and with the assistance of her mother walked across the farm compound to go to the bathroom.  With ORS, IVs and IV medications for fever and infection, tonight she is at 97 with a heart rate of 90.  Whenever anyone goes to a medical clinic to stay for any length of time, a family member always goes with them and stays.  The family member is responsible for meals and giving any help the sick person may need like assistance with bathing and walking to the bathroom, etc.

 

Now you may be wondering where I was when Sal was making the house call with Joann.  Well, I had a previous commitment to teach in the primary school here on the farm (about 70 students from second and sixth grades).  I had promised to teach about teeth.  Armed with 70 toothbrushes and 70 tubes of Colgate, I met with the whole group in the church building.  When I asked the kids if they brushed their teeth, I was pleasantly surprised that most of them said that they did.  I was equally surprised when I asked what they used for a brush and all but one told me a stick.  They told me they get a soft stick, chew one end until it’s frayed and then brush their teeth.  When I asked what they used on the stick, the answers varied: ashes (from a fire), salt, some stuff whose name I didn’t catch used to make okra and just water.  These students were very attentive, smiling, answering questions and they were very excited to get their toothbrush and toothpaste.  I decided after hearing what they were used to using, that dental floss would just be too much!!!  When I asked them if they knew what the doctor who took care of teeth was called, no one could answer,,,,and that’s simply because there are very few if any actual dentists in Zambia.  The reason I was stirred to teach about teeth was because of all the sore mouths, toothaches, broken teeth, abscesses, missing teeth etc that Sal and I have seen in the clinic.  That, along with all the donated toothbrushes and toothpaste was my incentive.  After the class, the teacher asked me if I had noticed any difference in the children.  I told him they seem to be more attentive today than the last time I taught and they are smiling more.  They have been playing games between classes outside the clinic and have been horsing around more at the water faucets.  He smiled and said “That is all because of your program.”  I asked what program because I did not understand, and he said the “feeding program.”  Ever since Sal started supplying the students with a bowl of HEPS (High Energy Protein Supplement), he said he has noticed a difference both in the classroom and on their faces.  Praise the Lord!     

 

 

 

Renee has been composing all the updates so far, but I felt the need to add this because it is on my heart…...

 

 

Susan has a dilemma that I fear is common to a lot of Zambians:  What to do now?  To receive the free HIV Medications from the government she must travel to Livingstone for additional blood tests to determine if she meets the WHO (World Health Organization) criteria for medications.  If she does the only way she can get the medications is to travel to Livingstone once a month to pick up and sign off for them.  Now some of you may be saying what is the big deal about that?  Well the deal is that most of the Zambians that have the greatest need for the medications do not live in the cities.  They live in the bush and must travel long distances (25 kilometers or greater - 45 km in Susan’s case).  Also, please remember that these are sick people.  So their options are to walk or get public transport which is very expensive for someone that lives in the bush. Often the expense of food is all they can handle.  If they are unable to pick up their medications in Livingstone, they must purchase them on the open market.  The cost of HIV medications is about $40 to $50 per month.  This is more than the average Zambian makes in a month. (The average Zambian makes 6,000 kwatcha or about $1.50 per day.)  I do not know what the answer to this problem is, but I firmly believe that God did not send me here to idly stand by and watch as His people perish.  But I also realize that the problem is beyond anything that I can do, so I will stand and watch God work this out as only He can.  Thank you for your prayers, your encouragement and

 

your support.

 

 

           

 

                                    Susan's Home

 

 

 

                           Susan in Hut

 

 

                       Susan in Clinic

November 15, 2005

 

 

“Every Desert Has An Oasis”

 

 

We celebrated my 50^th birthday at the Zambezi Sun Hotel in Victoria Falls.  It was a lovely getaway in an air-conditioned room.  Dinner at poolside with a live band playing dinner music created a very nice ambiance. Paved parking areas and cement sidewalks made one forget the dusty dirt roads of Livingstone and the rocky paths on the farm.  Everything pointed to a great escape until…..stepping out onto the balcony of our hotel room brought reality right back in.  There in the yard before us were baboons!!!  There were a whole group of them playing including a mother and her baby.  Most of us are use to looking out over the balcony in a hotel and maybe seeing the ocean waves but here we are in Africa seeing baboons!  Shaking our heads and realizing we were not going to be able to forget about where we are, we decided to take a walk on one of the paved sidewalks.  The road to the right led to the “Boma” and the road to the left led to Victoria Falls.  Having previously seen the Falls and being curious about what a Boma is, we went to the right.  Along the way we ran into a group of zebras!!  Now I want you to realize that these animals are not in cages…not in a protected area….but right out there!!!   I have pictures to prove it! A little further on, we came to the Boma.  It is an outdoor barbeque site where they have a buffet dinner and tribal dances.  They were preparing for a real PIG-PICKIN’…..the whole pig was skewered on a large spit turning over and over.  After talking to one of the workers, we found out that Boma stands for “British Occupation Management Association” referring back to when the British occupied Zambia.  Why they still call it that I don’t know….I was a little disappointed that it didn’t stand for something more exciting.  Walking a little further we came to the Zambezi River and a sign that said “Beware of Crocodiles!” Again another reminder of just where we are.  Continuing on in our walk, we came to the Royal Livingstone Hotel where rooms are over $600.00 per night…but you get a private balcony overlooking the Zambezi River and the Falls and….your own private butler!!  This is where Julia Roberts and Arnold Schwarzenegger have stayed.  You can get a massage right outside overlooking the Zambezi!!!  Outdoor dining overlooking the Falls…very nice.

 

All in all it was a nice way to turn 50!!!

 

 

 

 

November 7, 2005

 

 

 

It Rained!

 

Well, it’s Monday morning. Last night, we were awakened by lightning and thunder.  It rained a steady rain all night long.  Praise the Lord! I know that I wrote you before and told you that October was the hot time of year….but even October had been nothing compared to the last week.  We were told that the humidity builds up right before the rains come. Believe me, it was very hot and humid….cold cream was not cold, the cold water coming out of the faucet was warm and the Neosporin out of the tube in the clinic was pouring out like water!!  I slept with a bottle of water that had been frozen…(not to drink mind you)…but just to hold onto to get cool! (J Remember my age!)  Mike and Linda have filled up the pool on the farm so Sal and I have been using it from time to time to cool off, especially after working at the Clinic.  That’s enough about the weather….shall I tell you about the economy? 

 

Eighty percent of Zambia’s debt has been forgiven and that is very nice….however that means that they don’t need American currency as much anymore so the value of the dollar is decreasing and is expected to fall the rest of the year.  That means that we will be paying $6.50 per gallon of diesel….so whatever you are paying in the States, it is considerably less than it costs us here!!!   Right now there is a very limited selection of vegetables in the stores in town…lettuce is no where to be found.  The diesel shortage seems to be easing but we still fill up any chance we get and keep a couple containers on hand.  The electric company was out on the farm the other day…they are having some difficulty with fluctuating current.  Mike tested both our apartment and the main house and they were at 270 instead of 220.

 

The church on the farm here is in need of prayer…they need the Holy Spirit as much as we all do!  Please pray as the Lord leads you.

 

The clinic is coming along…almost completely furnished, decorated and organized.  I should have it done by the end of the week.  The apartment should also be completed soon.  I am trying to be obedient to what I heard…”Finish what you started.”

 

Once I have completed both locations, I will spend the bulk of my time soaking in the presence of the Lord as He is calling me to the Secret Place.  I really feel the power of this ministry is going to come from time spent in the secret place…so I am going to do my part.  As Sal is seeing patients, which is where he is finding God’s leading and favor right now, I am going to sit at the Lord’s feet, which is where I feel the Lord calling me at this moment.  I will also fit in some time for study for the nursing exam the first of December.  Sal and I plan on making it a three day trip to Lusaka…a little work, a little shopping and a little fun!

 

            Tomorrow, Sal will be taking two moms and their 12 and 13 month old infants into town to a place called the Cheshire House, a Catholic run organization that tests children for Cerebral Palsy and other neurological deficits.  These two moms brought their children with the chief complaint of them not being able to sit up. Upon exam, they were unable to hold their heads up, they had no control of their eye movements, and very limited hand grasps. The testing is free of charge, so Sal told them he would take them in and wait with them.  It remains to be seen what will follow the testing…we were able to pray with these distressed moms and lay hands on the babies for healing.  With God, nothing is impossible!  Please lift your voices in prayer with ours that they are healed in Jesus’ name and that the testing will only serve as a testimony to the glory of God.

 

            A man who works on the farm for Mike by the name of Julius brought his sister to us last Thursday in order that she could ask for employment.  She handed us a certificate stating she was a “Community Health Worker.”  She ran a health post in her village voluntarily for the government, giving medications, doing vaccines for the under five program and assisting with childbirth in and around the village.  Although we were not looking for another employee, we need to pray because both of our workers right now are planning on going back to school...Anna to nursing school in June and Bertha to finish secondary school sometime soon.  Did God bring Rona to us as He did Anna and Bertha?  How does she fit in?  Will she help us get our under five program up and running?  Will she be instrumental with all these anticipated deliveries coming up?  We are still in prayer.  We had a meeting with the Kazangula Health District last Thursday to get vaccines and the required recordkeeping for the under five program and also for an HIV counseling class required in order to do HIV testing.  When we got there however they were getting ready to go out on site visits and would not meet with us.  They said they had to reschedule for later on in the month.  Although disappointed, we have come to accept delay as part of God’s plan…He knows the best timetable.  Perhaps we need to have Rona in place first to open a door.  We will take another step as He lights another stone!!

 

            On a lighter note as the day is approaching….The big 50 is in two days and Sal is taking me to the Zambezi Sun Hotel for their buffet dinner and an overnight (in Air Condition!!)  I know that I’ve been celebrating this birthday for over a year now, (I haven’t forgotten the Surprise Party!), but I am excited to just get away for 24 hours or so to just relax and do nothing!!!!

 

 

Talk with you next week…..

 

November 1, 2005

 

Well, today is the start of another month…not that I’m counting or anything mind you.

 

October was a very busy month with a lot of things accomplished. We saw 526 patients during the month of October. People are coming from all the surrounding villages. Sal has seen the majority of patients while I have been kept busy "finishing what I started." That is the word the Lord gave me…to finish what I started. So I have been busy finishing the apartment and the clinic facilities. The cabinets we had sent on the container for the clinic were being used in our apartment because we didn’t have a pantry or kitchen cabinets. We didn’t have any drawers for clothes, no storage in the bathroom etc. Sal and I have been ordering furniture to be made both for the apartment and the clinic. We already had 2 wardrobes made for the bedroom and 2 bookcases. So yesterday, Terry and Linda in the lorry picked up 2 cabinets for the kitchen, 1 cabinet for the bathroom and 1 cabinet for the computer room here at the apartment along with a table, 2 chairs, a bed and mattress for the clinic. I had curtains made for one room in the clinic along with curtain rods for both places. We purchased a small refrigerator for the clinic for vaccines and lab tests, but the very day we brought it home our refrigerator stopped working. We were blessed that we had this small one in the car and have been able to use it while we wait for the part to fix the large one. A man in town is trying to find the part in Lusaka and we are having one sent over from the States also. In the meantime, the two clinic rooms have been cleaned, grouted, and painted. All the medical supply boxes stored around the farm have been gathered together, waiting for me to unload them this week. Linda has had the outsides of all the buildings painted and the clinic building has just been finished. We have 2 employees now working at the clinic…one is a receptionist and one a clinical assistant. Both Bertha and Anna speak, read and write English. Anna plans on going to Nursing School next year and is working to save up the money. With the newly established patient flow, Sal has been able to see 20-30 patients a day in about 6 hours. I will enclose what pictures I have and will send more later.

 

We have found out that CARE International is feeding our children in the school…however they are only feeding in one place which is up on the hill. The majority of the 350 school children are located in classrooms up there, but we have 70 down here on the farm proper. They are permitted to go up to the hill for the feeding but it is a 45 minute walk, after they have walked who knows how long to get to school. We have already treated some students for malnutrition and wounds related to malnutrition, so Sal has decided to feed these 70 children in this location as a preventative measure. He has purchased bowls and spoons and is providing a nutritious mealy meal grain mixture referred to as HEPS (High Energy Protein Supplement). He has worked it out with the teachers to be responsible for the feeding and the cleaning up process. The students come every day to the water next to our apartment to clean the bowls…they seem to be enjoying the supplement.

 

The monthly women’s conference was this past weekend and the ladies asked me to preach again on Sunday. It was in a different church this time with Pastor Alexander. Last month it was in Pastor Terry’s church…both Sons of Thunder planted churches. This time however Sal had to stay for services on the farm and so that meant I had to drive the Defender!!!!! I had only driven it on the farm up to the hill, but this time I had to drive on the Sons of Thunder road that isn’t always there, the main road and then dirt bush roads over RR tracks and a small bridge without any sides. I ended up driving Pastor Alexander, Joann and couple other ladies. We made it in one piece thanks to my copilot Joann who told me what to watch out for and how to maneuver over the different roads. Coming back…I not only had the same passengers as I came with, but probably about 10 more!!! It’s amazing…the Zambians can always fit one more!! Well we made it back to the farm safely but I did stall going over the RR tracks probably because of all the weight in the car. My shoulders have been very sore ever since probably from holding the steering wheel so tight. J Preaching went well. God had given me a message to share on "walking" with God. Walking is definitely something they understand!! When you walk, your eyes are always looking ahead…you are not looking behind and you are always moving forward…that’s the way our walk with God should be. Some of the most difficult times in our lives are times of transition when God is moving us from one level to another. The reason these times are so difficult is because we tend to find our peace and security in our place, not His presence. Just a brief summary for you: "Our security must be in the fact that no matter what the season, He is always there, not that we are always in that season." Nothing stays the same and we can’t move forward where God wants to take us if we are holding onto or looking back at the past.

 

Well………I think I was preaching to myself!!! I love you all, but I’m moving on with God…I will not hold onto or look back. I will keep my eyes looking forward toward the prize and will advance His Kingdom in Jesus’ name.

 

 

Clinic Rooms

 

 

Sal with Anna and Bertha

 

 

One of the Clinic Rooms with donated medicines

October 26, 2005

 

Freedom…….

 

It doesn’t seem to matter where you live or what people group you are….have you noticed that everyone wants to be free? It must be something inherent in us. Maybe it starts when we are born… "a getting free" so to speak. The Word says that "He who the Son sets free is free indeed!" I’ll leave you chew on that awhile.

 

Well, Zambia acquired its independence in 1964. Eleven years prior to that in 1953, Northern Rhodesia (Zambia), Nyasaland (Malawi) and Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) were joined together to form the Central African Federation. Despite the Federation, Northern Rhodesia actually remained under the control of the British. Further, the administration of the Federation was so biased towards Southern Rhodesia that the revenues of its mines flowed there instead of to Britain. Thus, though the Federation made a lot of promises to Northern Rhodesia, only few were delivered. The Federation broke up in 1963 and Zambia gained its independence on October 24, 1964. Independence Day for the country of Zambia is still celebrated annually on October 24th and it was a very big day of celebration even here on the farm. Up on the hill, they had a soccer tournament (they call it football). They even had some prizes! Now watching them play soccer was interesting….no shin guards, some with cleats, some with just shoes and some with no shoes at all. Remember, the field of play is not astro turf or even grass but they play on a field of dirt and stone and rock….OUCH! Besides the soccer tourney, they had women cooking food over an open fire….a very large pot of "shema" and "rape" (like grits and spinach). When the soccer games were over, the school children did some traditional dances. Joanne and I took four of the older children from the orphanage (the four year olds) up to the hill to witness the celebrations. They walked around wide-eyed taking it all in.

 

 

 

 

 

 

October 23, 2005

 

"Christmas in October!"

 

The elderly outreach on the farm went so well that Linda decided to do the same thing for the families on the farm. They were informed that the "Farm Giveaway," as she called it, would take place at 16 hours (4pm) on Friday in the church building. Linda, Joanne and I spent the day preparing piles of goodies for every family from the collection of donated items that had been received on the container that was sent by Damascus Wesleyan Church months earlier. Now of course we didn’t know sizes or even who would receive what pile…..we just made the piles trusting God to take care of the rest. You do know where I’m going with this don’t you? Read on.

 

Every family on the farm was represented and left the church building with a blanket, a couple pairs of shoes and a pile of clothes. Everyone received a stuffed animal and some sweets. Some people were especially blessed to receive a man’s suit, a nice dress or a pair of boots when their number was drawn out of a hat. I wish you all could have seen the happiness and excitement. It was like Christmas in October!!! It was amazing to see people in church today wearing clothes and shoes they had received in the giveaway….things that fit perfectly! Even the man that received a suit was wearing it. He is in the Bible College and will be a Pastor someday, and now he has his first suit! He was so proud as he walked around in that suit carrying his stuffed animal in his arms. He borrowed a tie from his teacher and asked me to take a "snap" (picture) of him to show his mother.J

 

Everyone left with a smile on their face and joy in their heart…and it was all possible because people gave. Please don’t stop your giving. It truly is more blessed to give than to receive. God promises that "A generous man will prosper. He that refreshes others will himself be refreshed." Please know that your generosity on all occasions is making a difference in this place. On behalf of the people of Zambia, our thanks and prayers go out to each and every one of you. May God bless you.

 

 

Well, what a difference a day makes!! 

 

 

 

I thought it would be good not to let you all hang on the last update too long, for God is good and His mercies are new every morning.          

 

In church the previous Sunday, Linda had told the elderly people 60 and over to come to the farm on Friday at 15 hours (3pm) because she had some “goodies” for them.  Linda wanted them to come to the farm so she could find out what village they were from, what their food status was and the number of orphans they were housing.  This is the time of year when food is short and Linda begins a feeding program if needed with a special concentration on the elderly.   It’s amazing to me how word spreads here in Zambia….they don’t have telephones and they don’t live close and yet the word spread all the way to Livingstone!  A total of 75 people came to the farm that day.  Some of these elderly people started walking at 3AM in order to arrive at 8AM, just so they wouldn’t have to walk in the hot sun.  Remember these are people 60 and over with the same aches and pains as Americans their age, but these people don’t have medicine to take, no bathtubs for a nice soak and some don’t even have shoes!  It made sense to all these people to make a day of it and stop in and be seen at the clinic in hope for some relief of whatever ailed them.  We saw 51 out of the 75 in the clinic; most with arthritic aches and pains…..Ibuprofen, Flame On (like Ben Gay), a little kindness and a smile for everyone! 

 

As they sat under the Pavilion (waiting room for the clinic) and under surrounding trees, Linda gave them rolls for lunch.  At 3pm, they all gathered in the church for encouragement out of the Word and then Linda, Joann and I handed out 4 articles of clothes, a pair of shoes and a blanket to each one.  Surveys were completed for assessment information and then they all climbed up on the Lorry truck (and yes they climbed up!) for transport home.  I have enclosed two pictures for you to get a visual idea of the number inside the church and the number in the waiting room of the clinic!! 

 

After a very satisfying Friday afternoon just as Sal and I were settling in to have a relaxing evening, the phone rang.  It was Mary from the orphanage on the hill calling to tell us that 9 month old Steven who had been seen in the clinic also that day was “going in and out of consciousness.”  We prayed, “O Lord not again”, grabbed equipment we thought we might need and jumped into the Defender.  Driving up the hill on the dirt roads after stopping at the clinic doesn’t do much for the ETA!  Sal and I continued to pray the whole way to one of the teachers houses…..Little Steven was wrapped up in a shetangi and a crocheted afghan and had a knitted hat on his head!  His temperature was 102 degrees and needless to say he was a little lethargic.  I unwrapped him and started to bathe him with tepid water teaching the mom as I went.  Sal consulted with the doctor in town for dosages of the concoction of medications for persistent fever via the telephone and then we proceeded to give three injections.  We decided it would be best if mom and baby came to stay at the clinic overnight just in case.  When we left to go back to the clinic, Steven’s temperature was 99.5 and he was playing.  Leaving mom and baby on the army cot in the clinic with instructions to leave him uncovered, breastfeed him often through the night and call us for any changes, we went to our apartment for the night.  The next day, Steven was doing well enough to go back home after another injection.  Mom was instructed to bring him back the next three days for follow up and an injection

 

on each of those days.  Well today is Monday and Steven has no temperature….he is doing well.  It says in God’s Word (and I’m paraphrasing)….that what Satan meant for evil, God turns to good!  We received a blessing when Steven’s mom asked for a job!  After prayer and a proper interview, we have hired our second worker for the Clinic!

 

 

 

 

Zambian Waiting Room!!!!!